Sewing-machine motor



May .G 1924.

` o. P. ERHARDT SEWING MACHINE MOTOR 4 SheetsSheet l Filed Dec. 21.11917 May c, 1924.

O. P. ERHARDT SEWING MACHINE MOTOR Filed Deb 21, 1917 4 sheets-sheet 2 o. P. ERHAR-DT SEWING MACHINE MOTOR 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed De'.

May v 6 l 924.

, O. P. 'ERHARDT SEWING MACHINE MOTOR Filed Dec. 21 1917 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Patented May 6, 1924.

unirse sTAras wane OSCAR P. ERHARDT, OF WEST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TOTHE C. GILBERT COMPANY, 0F NEW HAVEN, CONN ECTICUT, A. CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

SEWING-MACHINE moron.

Application led December 21, 1917. Serial No. 208,249.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OSCAR P. Eminem,- a citizen of'the United States, residin in the town of West Haven, county of ew Haven, and'StatlVof Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machine-Motors, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact dei scription.

This invention vrelates to motors for driving sewing machines, and it has particular re erence to a portable motor attachment which can 'be readily applied to and removedh from sewing machines of various makes. When placed on the machinemy improved motor drives the hand wheel very effectively by friction. One of the primary objects of my invention is to `provide a simple, convenient and serviceable motor attachment of the portable type, which can be used equally well with sewing machines of different patterns and different diameters of hand wheels.

Another object ofthe invention is to rovide anelectric motor drive in whic a friction pulley or wheel on the motor shaft is held in the proper relation to the machine wheel.

Another object of my invention is to provide a motor attachment which can be very readily and conveniently applied to the head of the sewing machine and readily detached therefrom.

Another object of theinvention is tofur nish a very sim. le and convenient arrangement whereby t e drive wheel on the motor, shaft rests against the machine wheel by` gravity and whereby'the motor readil accommodates itself to machine wheels o different diameters.

Another object of the invention is to f urnish a driving attachment for sewin vmachines which is of a convenient detac able type and can be mounted on the machine head whenv the attachment is in use, so that it will not take Ju space on the machine table and be in t e way. The improved device has, in this latter respect, all of the advantages of certainl attachments which have heretofore been built onto ,the sewing machine head as a lpermanent part of the machine; and, in a dition, it has the advantage of: ready removability from the machine, so that the motor member when -massage vlbrator, etc.

removed can -be used for other .purposes such as operating a beverage mixer, fan,

my invention, the motor member can be readily detached as a unit, and it is of such a character that it can be readily used for In accordance with l other purposes than the driving of sewing machines.

To these and vother ends, the invention l consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a fragmentary front elevation of a sewing machine head equipped with a motor attachment embodying my improvements; Y

Fig. 2 is a rear view of the parts shown in Fig. l; v

Fig. 3 is a top (plan view; y y

' Fig. 4 is an en view partly broken away;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 of F ig. 3, with the motor shown in dotted lines;

Figs. 6 7 and 8 arefdetail views; l

Fig. 9 1s. a top lan view of a sewing machine equip ed with an attachment of somewhat modi ed form;

Fig. 10 is a section on 9; and v Figs. 11 and 12 are details of the attachment shown in Figs. 9 and 10.

In the drawings, I have shown my improved attachment applied to a sewing machine of wellknown type having a head 2O only artially shown, and the usual machine whee or hand wheel 21 fixed to a shaft 22, which has a bearing in a sleeve-like projection' 23 on the head. The sleeve-like bearing projection or boss is a feature of practically all sewing machines now on the market, and in the forms of my invention herein shown, it islto this part of the machine that the attachment is applied. In the form. shown in Figs. 1 to 8,. the attachment conslsts primarily of a supporting frame 24, a cradle 1in@ ia-io of Fig.

25 pivoted thereto to swing in a vertical boss and having two spaced points 29 to bear thereon. These bearing points 29 coo crate with a clamping screw 30 threaded t rough one extremity 31 of the crescent. The axis of the screw is preferably about half way between the spaced bearing points 29, and the points 29 and the point 31a of screw 30 will engage the vbearing boss or projection at the apices of an isosceles triangle, as shown in Fi 5. The inner end 31a of the screw is pre erably formed with a sharp point, which is suitably hardened so that it will bite into the material of the machine frame when the screw is screwed inwardly with a small wrench or the like, thereby clamping the frame 24`securely to the machine head alongside the hand wheel, in the space between the hand wheel and the main art of the machine head, the body of the rame 24 being substantially parallel to the hand wheel, as shown in Fig. 1, and extending rearwardly therefrom in the example shown. The ,rearwardly extending portion of the frame consists of an extension 32 which is directed upwardly and rearwardly from the crescent-s aped portion 28 in the lane of the latter, and serves as a mounting for a guide rod 33, on which the cradle 25 is adjustably mounted for longitudinal Sliding movement. The rod 33, in the form shown, extends from that side of the. frame 24 which is away from the hand wheel and lies slightly back of the machine head, as shown 1n Fig. 3. The cradle 25 is formed of a flat metal arm vhaving spaced perforated knuckles 34 at the upper end of the same, which t over the guide 'rod 33, whereby the cradle is pivotally mounted on the guide rod, although it can be readily slid along the same to allow for the alignment of the drive pulley with the machine wheel. The motor member is mounted on the lower end of the cradle, as hereinafter described. Between the spaced knuckles 34 at the upper end of the cradle is a cam member 35, shown in detail in Fig. 8, havin a perforatien 36 fitting over the guide ro The cam member has a cam projection 37 at the lower part thereof ada ted to engage the edge 38 of thecradle between the knuckles, and the cam is also provided with a manipulating handle or extension 39, which projects forwardly of the machine in the example shown at a point above the head, where it is readily accessible. In the u per part of the cam member 35' is mountedJ a set screw 40 engaging@J threaded opening in the cam frame 24. After the cradle has been adjusted longitudinally, it may be clamped in position by the set screw 40, as will be obvious. The lower end of the cradle 25 is extended laterally, as shown at 41, and carries the motor member 26 on the upper surface thereof, the connection between the motor member and the extension 41 being a detachable one. The motor member selected for illustration is of the type illustrated in the application of Alfred C. Gilbert, Serial No. 203,975, and is adapted for a multiplicity of dierent uses. It is provided at the lower part with spaced integral lugs 42, between which a block 43 is detachably clamped by screws 44, substantially as disclosed in said Gilbert application, the lower end of the block 43 being provided with a tapped hole as in said application. This tapped hole, which it is not necessary to show herein, registers with a perforation 45 in the cradle extension 41,

and the motor member is detachably held in place by a set screw 46 which asses upward throu h ythe opening 45 and) engages the threa s in the block 43 attached to the casing of the motor member.

The operation of the improved attachment will be more or less obvious from the foregoing description. The frame member 20 is applied to the bearing boss 23 in the manner shown in Fig. 1, preferably with the arm 32 extending toward the rear of the machine, so that the motor attachment will be out of the way, the motor being located at theJ rear of the machine. The motor, which is detachably mounted on its cradle in the manner previously described, can be attached to the guide rod 33 of the supporting frame either before or after the member 24 has been applied to the head of the machine. When placed on the rod, the cradle may be adjusted longitudinally, so as to align the drive wheel on the motor shaft with the -machine Wheel. A considerable range of adjustment is provided fory by the guide rod 33, so that the drive pulley on the motor shaft can properly engage the hand wheels of many diii'erent types of machines, and, as before stated, practically all machines are provided with a bearing boss on which the frame member 24 may be detachably secured, .the fixedl bearing points 29 in combination with the adjustable bearing point 31 providing for the clamping of the supporting frame very effectively on bosses or sleeves of various diameters, the cradle member being freely pivoted to the supporting frame, so as to swing up and down -on the guide rod 33. The pulley 27 rests by gravity against the periphery of the machine wheel at the rear of the latter, as shewn in Fig. 4, the weight of the motor being exerted in a downward and forward direction as it is held some what to the rear of the position in which it would normally hang from the rod 33, by engagement with the machine wheel. In order to prevent the pulley from pressing too hard on the machine wheel, the screw 40 is used. By depressing the arm 39 of the cam member, the cam 37 presses on the cradle member in such a manner as to lift the motor from the machine wheel, as will be obvious. When the motor is in just the proper position to produce the desired amount of friction between the pulley and the machine wheel, the set screw 40 -is tightened, so as to clamp the cam member in a fixed position on the rod 33, and therefore the cradle member and motor are clamped in thev desired position. The cam member with its arm 39 forms a very effective means for raising the motor out of engagement with the machine wheel, and if desired the motor may be clamped by the set screw 40 in a completely' disengaged position. The main value of the set screw 40 is that it ermits the machine wheel to be relieved ci) a portion of the weight of the motor in a regulable manner, so that just the right amount of friction for driving the sewing machine in the most eiiicient manner can be obtained.

It will be understood, of course, that the swinging mounting of the motor member on the supporting frame permits the attachment to be used successfully in connection with sewing machine wheels of different diameters. When a sewing machine of larger diameter than that shown in Fig. 4 is employed; it is merely 'necessary to swing the motor member a little farther to the rear, whereas when the diameter of the machine Wheel is less than that shown in Fig. 4, the cradle supporting the motor will hang down in a more nearly vertical position. By the construction described, it will be obvious that the motor accommodates itself automatically to the machine wheel. Preferably, i the motor pulley en ages the machine wheel by avity, but mo ifications may be made in t is regardwhile still retaining other features of the invention.

Preferably, the guide rod 33 is detachably secured to the frame member 24 by a screw 47 threaded through the wall of the socket in the extension 32, in 'which the rod 33 is inserted. This enables the attachment tobe conveniently shipped in knockdown condition. It will be observed that the rod on which the motormember is suspended is located preferably at the rear of the usual spool-supportin pin 48 of the sewing machine shaft, -an the motor member is mounted to swing in a plane parallel to that of the machine wheel in an upward and downward direction about an axis located somewhat eccentrically with respect to the machine wheel axis and disposed lto one side of such axis, preferably at the rear side thereof, as described. It will be obvious from the foregoing' that the parts readily packed in knock-down condition, assembled, and applied .to the sewing machine. 4When the sewing machine is not in use, the attachment can be removed very readily and the motor member 26 canl be used for various other purposes.

In the modiication shown in Fig. 9, the supporting frame consists of a flat plate 49 set on top of the machine head and having a spring fork 50 straddling and frictionally en aging the bearing boss 23 of the machine. he frame 49 is also detachably secured in place by providing a slot 51 therein, having notches 52 along one side, one of which notches is adapted to engage the spool-supporting pin 48 of, the. machine. Along the rear edge of the supporting frame plate is a guide rod 53, on which a cradle member 54 is slidably mounted.` In this case the cradle member or arm has'an integral manipulating extension 55 at the upper end thereof, whereby it maybe rocked about the rod'53 as a pivot and no means for fixing the cradle arm in place on the guide rod is provided, although such means mi ht be provided if desired.

n referring in the claims to a gravity of the improved attachment can be very acting motor and. the engagement of the y drive pulle with the machine wheel by gravity, l o not, of course, wish to be understood as excluding the use of means for preventing the weight of the motor from acting on the hand wheel to a greater or less extent, as herein indicated; on the other hand, I simply` intend to indicate by this broad language that the drive pulley on the motor lshaft has a tendency to engage or to lie in close proximity to the machine wheel. It will be obvious that other modifications of the improved motor attachment will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art, without departing from the principles of my invention.

lVhat I claim is: l. The combination with a. sewing machine having a head and a wheel, of a motor mounted on the head in driving en gement with the wheel, adjustable longitu inally of the head through a considerable distance ment with the wheel.

2. The combination. with a Sewing machine head having a shaft and a wheel at one end of the head, of a gravit -acting motor member detachably ap liedY to the machine head for driving sai wheel, said motor memberbein adjustable about an axis parallel to the axis of the wheel, andmeans for securing it in adjusted positions.

3. The combination with a sewing machine head having a shaft, and a driving wheel on lli) and urged by gravity into driving engagev the shaft, of a frame secured to the head and extendin longitudinally thereof on the headwar side of the wheel and above the horizontal plane of the wheel axes, and a motorsupported upon the framev for longitudinal adjustment along the machine head to various operative positions.

4. The combination with a sewing machine head having a shaft, and a driving wheel on the shaft, of a frame secured to the head and extendin longitudinally thereof on the headward si e of the wheel, and a motor su ported upon the frame for longitudinal a justment along the machine head to various operative positions, and urged by gravity into driving relation with the driving wheel.

5. The combination with a sewing machine head having a shaft at one end, and a wheel on said shaft, of a motor member for driving said Wheel frictionally, a supporting member for said motor member secured thereto, and means for attaching said supporting member to the head so that the motor member is disposed at one side of the head and on the headward side of the Wheel, said motor member being slidable on its support toward and away from the wheel, and means for securing said motor member in the desired adjustment.

6. The combination with a sewing machine havin a shaft at one end and a wheel on said shat, of a `motor member having a pulley for driving said wheel frictionally, a supporting member for said motor member secured to and located beneath the latter, and extending upwardly along the body thereof, and means for mounting the upper portion of said supporting member on the sewing machine head so that said motor member can swing in a vertical plane, substantially parallel to the plane of the wheel.

7. The combination with a sewing machine head having a shaft at one end and Wheel on said shaft, of a motor member having a drive pulley for driving said wheel frictionally, a supporting arm secured beneath said motor member and extending upwardly along the body thereof, and means for mounting the upper portion of said supporting arm on the machine head so that it can Swingin a substantially vertical plane, parallel to the plane of the wheel to bring the driving pulley into and out of engagement with the machine wheel.

8. The combination with a sewing machine having a head with a shaft at one end and a Wheel on said shaft, of a motor member having a pulley for driving said wheel frictionally, said motor member located at the headward side of the wheel, a frame member secured to the machine head, and a depending supporting arm for said'motor member swingingly mounted on said frame member on a substantially horizontal axis to providey for the movement of the drive pulley into and out of engagement with the machine wheel.

9. The combination with a sewing machine head having a wheel at one end, of a y motor member for driving said wheel frictionally, located on the headward side of the wheel, a depending supporting arm beneath said motor member, and means for mounting said supporting arm fromthe head so that it can swing 1n a plane perpendicular to the wheel axis, whereby it is maintained by gravity in driving relation with the machine wheel. l

10. The combination with a sewing machine having a head and a wheel, of a motor mounted on the head in driving engagement with the wheel and adjustable longitudinally of the machine head, and means for fixing the lmotor in the desired longitudinal adjustment.

11. The combination with a sewing machine head having a wheel at one end, of a motor member for driving said Wheel frictionally, located on the headward side of the wheel and swingingly mounted from the machine head to engage and disengage the wheel, said motor member also being adjustable longitudinally of the head toward and away from the machine wheel through a considerable distance, and means for fixing the motor member in the desired adjustment.

12. The combination with a sewing machine having a head and a wheel at one end of the head, of a motor member having a drive pulley for frictionally engaging said machine wheel, the body of said motor member being located at the headward side of the Wheel, and means for supporting the motor member from the upper part ofthe sewing machine head so that said motor member can be adjusted longitudinally of the head to various operative positions.

13. The combination with a sewing machine having a head and a wheel at one end of the head, of a motor member having a drive pulley for frictionally engaging said machine wheel, and means to support said motor comprising a supporting member mounted at the upper part of the head and depending downwardly therefrom and hav.-A ing its lower end secured to the motor inember, the body of said motor 'member being located at the headward side of the wheel, and being adjustable longitudinally of the head to various operative positions.

14. The combination with a sewing machine having a hand Wheel, a shaft therefor and a bearing around said shaft, of a motor attachment secured to said bearing and arranged to drive said wheel frictionally.

15. The combination with a sewing machine having a frame, a shaft journalled therein, a bearing sleeve around the shaft, and a Wheel on said shaft, of a supporting frame detachably secured to the machine frame above said bearing sleeve, and a driving motor for saidA wheel carried by said supporting frame.

16. The combination with a machine head having a wheel, of a motor member having a pulley for driving said wheel frictionally, the axes of said pulley and wheel bein substantially parallel in operative position, a supporting member located beneath and detachably secured to the under portion of said motor member, and means for mounting said supporting member to swing in a substantially vertical plane so as to move the drive pulley toward and from engagement with the machine wheel, while maintaining the parallelism of said axes, said means includmg a supported member attached to the upper part of the machine head and depending downwardly therefrom.

17. The combination with a sewing machine having a wheel, and a shaft bearing, of a drive motor for the wheel having a mounting extending around the shaft -bearing, and means for clampingvsaid mounting detachably to said bearing.

18. The combination with a sewing machine having a wheel, and a machine frame rovided with a laterall projecting bearing oss adjacent said whee of a motor attachment supported from said bearing boss.

19. The combination with a sewing machine having a wheel, and a laterall projecting bearing boss on the machine rame adjacent said wheel, of a motor attachment detachably secured to said bearing boss.

20. The combination with a ysewing machine having a wheel and a bearing boss adjacent said wheel, of a motor member for driving the wheel, swinging supporting means for said motor member, and means for securing said supporting means to said bearin boss.

21. he combination with a sewing machine having a wheel and bearing boss adjacent said wheel, of a gravity acting motor attachment for drivin said wheel having a supporting member etachably secured to said bearing boss.-

22. The combination with a sewing machine having a wheel, and a bearing boss ad- 1 jacent said wheel, of a supporting frame secured to the bearing boss, and a motor member swingingly r mounted on said frame and adapted to ive said wheel, said motor member being adjustable longitudinally of the wheel axis.

23. A sewing machine head having a bearing boss yand a drivin attachment comprising a member adapte to detachably engage` therbearing boss and 'an electric motr carried by said member.

24. The combination withfa sewing machine having a head with a wheel at one end, of a motor-member havinga casing located at the headward side of the wheel and provided with a pulley for driving the machine wheel frictionally, means for detachably supporting the motor member from the sewing machine head so that said motor member can swing in al vertical plane to engage the drive pulley with and disengage it from the machine wheel, means for varying the frictional engagement between said drive pulley and said machine wheel, said motor member being adjustable longitudinally of the head toward and away from the machine wheel, and means for fixing the motor member in the desired adjustment.

25. Adsewing machine driving attachment,

comprising a supporting -frame, means for securing the same detachably to the machine shaped portion adapted to be detachably' clamped on the bearing boss of the machine.

28. A sewing machine driving attachment comprising a frame member with a crescentshaped portion adapted to be detachably clamped on the bearing boss of themachine,

and al motor member supported by said frame member.

29. In combination, a sewing machine head, a motor, and means for supporting the motor from the-head comprising a supporting member mounted adjacent thev upper portion lof the head and depending downwardly therefrom, and having its lower end secured to the lower` portion of the motor body.

30. The combination with a sewing machine head of a lmotor supporting member mounted thereon, at the upper part thereof, for pivotal movement and also for movement of translation for a considerable distance, said member depending from its point of support and having its lower end secured to the motor.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand on the 18th day of December, 1917.

OSCAR P. Ear-mann 

